Latvia

Latvia 

 

Geography                 Economy                 Defense Forces
 

People                    Transportation          Government



Communications            History      	          Travel

GEOGRAPHY

Location

Eastern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea, between Estonia and Lithuania

Area

Land Boundaries

Total 1,078 km, Belarus 141 km, Estonia 267 km, Lithuania 453 km, Russia 217 km

Coastline

531 km

Maritime Claims

International Disputes

The Abrene section of border ceded by the Latvian Soviet Socialist Republic to Russia in 1944

Climate

Maritime; wet, moderate winters

Terrain

Low plain
lowest point: Baltic Sea 0 m
highest point: Gaizinkalns 312 m

Natural Resources

Land Use

Irrigated Land

160 sq km (1990)

Environment

PEOPLE

Population

2,468,982 (July 1996 est.)
2,762,899 (July 1995 est.)

Age Structure

0-14 Years

20% (male 254,664; female 244,502) (July 1996 est.)
22% (male 304,830; female 294,521) (July 1995 est.)

15-64 Years

66% (male 775,690; female 848,128) (July 1996 est.)
65% (male 870,128; female 933,003) (July 1995 est.)

65 Years and Over

14% (male 108,814; female 237,184) (July 1996 est.)
13% (male 112,941; female 247,476) (July 1995 est.)

Population Growth Rate

-1.39% (1996 est.)
0.5% (1995 est.)

Birth Rate

10.94 births/1,000 population (1996 est.)
13.71 births/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Death Rate

15.19 deaths/1,000 population (1996 est.)
12.49 deaths/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Net Migration Rate

-9.69 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1996 est.)
3.76 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Sex ratio:

at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.92 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.46 male(s)/female
all ages: 0.86 male(s)/female (1996 est.)

Infant Mortality Rate

21.2 deaths/1,000 live births (1996 est.)
21 deaths/1,000 live births (1995 est.)

Life Expectancy at Birth

Total Fertility Rate

1.62 children born/woman (1996 est.)
1.97 children born/woman (1995 est.)

Nationality

Ethnic Divisions

Religions

Languages

Lettish (official), Lithuanian, Russian, other

Literacy

Age 15 and over that can read and write (1989)

Labor Force

1.407 million

By occupation:

GOVERNMENT

Names

Digraph

LG

Type

Republic

Capital

Riga

Administrative Divisions

26 counties (singular - rajons) and 7

Independence

6 September 1991 (from Soviet Union)

National Holiday

Independence Day, 18 November (1918)

Constitution

Newly elected Parliament in 1993 restored the 1933 constitution

Legal System

Based on civil law system

Suffrage

18 years of age; universal

Executive Branch

Legislative Branch

Unicameral

Parliament (Saeima)

Elections last held 30 September-1 October 1995 (next to be held NA October 1998); results - Saimnieks 18%, LC 17%, For Latvia 16%, TB 14%, LNNK 8%, Unity 8%, LSZ/LKDS 7%, Harmony 6%, Socialist 6%; seats - (100 total) Saimnieks 18, LC 17, For Latvia 16, TB 14, LNNK 8, Unity 8, LSZ/LKDS 7, Harmony 6, Socialist 6

Judicial Branch

Supreme Court, judges' appointments are confirmed by the Saeima

Political Parties and Leaders

Democratic Party "Saimnieks" (DPS), Ziedonis CEVERS, chairman; Latvia's Way (LC), Valdis BIRKAVS; People's Movement For Latvia, Joachim SIEGERIST; Fatherland and Freedom (TB), Maris GRINBLATS; Latvian Unity Party (LVP), A. KAULS; Latvian National Conservative Party (LNNK), A. SEILE; Green Party (LSZ), O. BATAREVSK; Latvian Farmers Union (LZS), A. ROZENTALS; Christian Democrat Union (LKDS), P. KLAVINS; National Harmony Party (TSP), Janis JURKANS; Latvian Socialist Party (LSP), F. STROGANOVS; Latvian Liberal Party (LLP), J. DANOSS; Political Association of the Underprivileged (MPA), B. PELSE, V. DIMANTS, J. KALNINS; Latvian Democratic Labor Party (LDDP), J. BOJARS; Party of Russian Citizens (LKPP), V. SOROCHIN, V. IVANOV; Popular Front of Latvia (LTF), Uldis AUGSTKALNS; Political Union of Economists (TPA), E. KIDE; Latvian National Democratic Party (LNDP), A. MALINS; "Our Land" (MZ), M. DAMBEKALNE; Anticommunist Union (PA), P. MUCENIEKS; Latvian Social-Democratic Workers Party (LSDSP); Party for the Defense of Latvia's Defrauded People; Latvian Independence Party (LNP), V. KONOVALOUS

Member of

BIS, CBSS, CCC, CE, EBRD, ECE, EU (applicant), FAO, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ITU, NACC, OSCE, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WEU (associate partner), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO (applicant)

National Anthem

Flag

Two horizontal bands of maroon (top and bottom), white (middle, narrower than other two bands)

ECONOMY

Overview

Latvia's economic transformation to a modern market economy - rivaled only by Estonia among the former Soviet states - faltered in 1995 as a result of banking and budget crises. Latvia's largely unregulated financial sector suffered a series of bank failures, including the collapse of the country's largest commercial bank - Bank Baltija - due largely to criminal activity by the owners. The government's attempts to compensate depositors of failed banks exacerbated an existing budget shortfall; poor revenue collection and a soft treasury bill market had already caused the government to incur a larger than expected deficit early in the year. As a result of the crises, Latvia's budget deficit for 1995 was $168 million, double that originally planned. In addition, GDP growth came to a halt. The Central Bank maintained its tough monetary policies - severely limiting credits to the state, despite the budget problems - helping to keep annual inflation the lowest among the Baltic states, at about 20%. New Prime Minister SKELE wants to invigorate the privatization of industry; agriculture already is mainly in private hands.

National Product

GDP - purchasing power parity - $14.7 billion (1995 est.), $12.3 billion (1994 estimate as extrapolated from World Bank estimate for 1992)

National Product Real Growth Rate

-1.5% (1995 est.)
2% (1994 est.)

National Product Per Capita

$5,300 (1995 estimate as extrapolated from World Bank estimate for 1994)
$4,480 (1994 est.)

Inflation Rate (consumer Prices)

20% (1995 est.)
1.9% (monthly average 1994)

Unemployment Rate

6.5% (1995 est.)
6.5% (December 1994)

Budget

Exports

$1.3 billion (f.o.b., 1995 est.)
$1 billion (f.o.b., 1994)

Commodities:

Partners:

Imports

$1.7 billion (c.i.f., 1995 est.)
$1.2 billion (c.i.f., 1994)

Commodities:

Partners:

External Debt

NA

Industrial Production

Growth rate -9.5% (1994 est.); accounts for 27% of GDP

Electricity

Industries

Agriculture

Principally dairy farming and livestock feeding; products - meat, milk, eggs, grain, sugar beets, potatoes, vegetables; fishing and fish packing

Illicit Drugs

Transshipment point for illicit drugs from Central and Southwest Asia and Latin America to Western Europe; limited producer of illicit opium; mostly for domestic consumption; also produces illicit amphetamines for export

Economic Aid

Recipient: ODA, $122 million (1993)

Currency

1 lat = 100 cents; introduced NA March 1993

Exchange Rates

Lats per US$1 - 0.544 (January 1996), 0.528 (1995), 0.560 (1994), 0.675 (1993), 0.736 (1992)

Fiscal Year

Calendar year

TRANSPORTATION

Railroads

Highways

Inland Waterways

300 km perennially navigable

Pipelines

Crude oil 750 km; refined products 780 km; natural gas 560 km (1992)

Ports

Daugavpils, Liepaja, Riga, Ventspils

Merchant Marine

Airports

COMMUNICATIONS

Telephone System

660,000 telephones (1993 est.); 240 telephones/1,000 persons (1993); Latvia is better provided with telephone service than most of the other former Soviet republics; an NMT-450 analog cellular telephone network covers 75% of Latvia's population

Radio

Television

DEFENSE FORCES

Branches

Ground Forces, Navy, Air and Air Defense Forces, Security Forces, Border Guard, Home Guard (Zemessardze)

Manpower Availability

Males age 15-49 583,134; males fit for military service 457,067; males reach military age (18) annually 16,180 (1996 est.)

Defense Expenditures

176 million rubles, 3% to 5% of GDP (1994); note - conversion of the military budget into U.S. dollars using the prevailing exchange rate could produce misleading results

History
World Atlas

last updated: 20 november 1997